Bank of England inundated with demand

Banks inundated the Bank of England with requests for funds at this morning's emergency auction, as fears over their ability to fund themselves reached a new peak and the stock market values of UK and European financial institutions plunged.

The Bank of England ran the auction for Â£5bn (â¬6.4bn) in three-day funds this morning in response to conditions in the short-term money markets, it said in a statement this morning.